Tag: pleasure

Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality, ﬁrst published in 1905, is undoubtedly one of Freudʼs most important texts and, in many respects, the most contemporary. It is a summa in which Freud summarizes and articulates his insights into the meaning of sexuality for human existence in general, and for psychopathology in particular. As can […]

The utopian child of Charles Fourier

The central tenet of Charles Fourierʼs theory was the promise of universal happiness and social unity through a radical revision of manʼs relationship to labour. Vehemently opposed to both the violence of mass insurrection and the hypocrisies and corruption of burgeoning industrial capitalism, he dreamed of a paciﬁc cultural revolution that would emerge from the […]

Kristeva and The Idiots Cecilia sjöholm The thematic obsessions of ﬁlmmaker Lars von Trier are as dubious as they are relevant to contemporary thought: unconditional love, feminine sacriﬁce, childish gestural provocations and victimization are contrasted with the neurotic fears of normality and authoritarian abuses of power. It has been said by various ﬁlm critics that […]

Houellebecq’s novels of ideas

Surplus consciousness Houellebecq’s novels of ideas Martin ryle Michel Houellebecqʼs ﬁction is said to be selling better outside France than that of any French novelist since Camus. Atomised (1999) and Platform (2001), his two more recent novels, appeared in English within a year of their publication. [1] The comparison some reviews have drawn with Camus […]